Victoria Collins MP: written questions
379 published records · newest first.
Written questions
Radio Frequencies: Mobile PhonesDepartment for Science, Innovation and TechnologyTabled 4 Mar 2025AnsweredUIN 35479More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what discussions he has had with Ofcom on increasing spectrum available to mobile operators.
Answer: I have not had any discussions with Ofcom directly on increasing the spectrum available to mobile operators, but my officials are in regular discussion with them on spectrum issues. The Government recognises the importance of ensuring access to suitable s...
Answered 12 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordEnergy: MetersDepartment for Business and TradeTabled 21 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 32704More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of taking steps to ensure that energy meter reading technology is being upgraded in line with the latest technological developments
Answer: The accuracy of energy meters is of benefit to both energy providers and consumers and is a requirement of the Electricity and Gas Act legislation covering energy meters. To ensure the UK is taking account of the latest technological innovations the Gover...
Answered 3 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordSpecial Educational Needs: Harpenden and BerkhamstedDepartment for EducationTabled 21 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 32684More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to help support children with special educational needs in the Harpenden and Berkhamsted constituency.
Answer: This government’s ambition is that all children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) or in alternative provision receive the right support to succeed in their education and as they move into adult life.The department wan...
Answered 3 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordTravel Cards: Harpenden and BerkhamstedDepartment for TransportTabled 21 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 32683More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of extending the Oyster card scheme to stations in the Harpenden and Berkhamsted constituency.
Answer: Transport for London (TfL) and Operators can consider and propose Oyster expansion where a positive business case can be demonstrated. No such proposals have been put forward to the Department. However, we are expanding ticketing innovations such as Pay A...
Answered 28 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordDementia: Health ServicesDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 21 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 32623More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he plans to include policies on supporting people with dementia in the 10-year health plan for the NHS.
Answer: We have committed to develop a 10 Year Plan to deliver a National Health Service fit for the future. We will carefully be considering policies, including those that impact people with dementia, with input from the public, patients, health staff, and our p...
Answered 3 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordDementia: Music TherapyDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 21 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 32609More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department plans to train carers in using musical techniques to support people living with dementia.
Answer: We are committed to a professional, well supported social care workforce. Under the Health and Social Care Act 2008, providers must provide enough suitably qualified, competent, skilled, and experienced staff to meet the needs of the people using the serv...
Answered 3 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordMedical EquipmentDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 21 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 32590More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department has had discussions with NHS England on the potential merits of promoting the return and reissue of reusable NHS medical equipment.
Answer: The Department published the Design for Life Roadmap in October 2024, which sets out the Government's ambition to transition away from all avoidable single-use medical technology products by 2045. One of the key mechanisms for doing this, as outlined in t...
Answered 5 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordCounselling and PsychiatryDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 21 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 32259More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of (a) psychotherapy and (b) counselling professionals operating without a protected title on patients.
Answer: Psychotherapists and counsellors are not statutorily regulated. Where a health profession is regulated by law, this normally allows for a professional’s title to be protected in law, making it a criminal offence for someone to practise or use a protected ...
Answered 26 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordHartley Pensions: InsolvencyTreasuryTabled 21 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 32258More
Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether she plans to take steps to provide compensation for self-invested personal pension holders affected by Hartley Pensions entering administration.
Answer: As a self-invested personal pension (SIPPs) provider, Hartley Pensions is regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). The FCA is working with the administrators of Hartley Pensions to ensure that any customers affected by the situation achieve the...
Answered 3 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordTrain Operating CompaniesDepartment for TransportTabled 13 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 31559More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps she is taking to ensure private train operating companies are held to account for their performance during the transition to rail nationalisation; and what steps she will take to ensure that performa
Answer: The Secretary of State for Transport will not tolerate poor performance and will continue to hold all operators to account through a range of measures, including during the transition of services to a public sector operator. All operators will continue t...
Answered 26 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordArtificial Intelligence: InfrastructureDepartment for Science, Innovation and TechnologyTabled 13 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 31558More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether he has made an assessment of the potential impact of AI zones on local infrastructure.
Answer: The AI Opportunities Action Plan outlines how the UK can build the cutting-edge compute infrastructure needed to lead in AI development and deployment, securing long-term economic growth and staying at the forefront of AI innovation.AI Growth Zones will e...
Answered 28 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordDigital Technology: DisadvantagedDepartment for Science, Innovation and TechnologyTabled 12 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 31285More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, if he will make an estimate of how many and what proportion of (a) children, (b) adults and (c) pensioners in digital poverty in each year since 2018.
Answer: There is no single accepted definition of digital poverty, but we know that digital exclusion impacts people broadly across demographics with some, including older people, at higher risk.According to Ofcom in 2024, 6% of UK adults did not have internet ac...
Answered 28 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordOvarian Cancer: DiagnosisDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 12 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 31274More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many people have been diagnosed with ovarian cancer through the non-specific symptoms pathway.
Answer: We will get the National Health Service diagnosing cancer earlier and treating it faster, including blood cancer. NHS Planning Guidance, issued on 30 January 2025, set stretching targets for cancer. By March 2026, approximately 100,000 more people every y...
Answered 6 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordOvarian Cancer: DiagnosisDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 12 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 31272More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to tackle regional variations in early diagnosis of ovarian cancer.
Answer: We will get the National Health Service diagnosing cancer earlier and treating it faster, including blood cancer. NHS Planning Guidance, issued on 30 January 2025, set stretching targets for cancer. By March 2026, approximately 100,000 more people every y...
Answered 6 Mar 2025
Original Parliament recordDental Services: PregnancyDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 5 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 29294More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to improve the accessibility of dental care during the maternity exemption period.
Answer: We are aware of the challenges faced in accessing a dentist and we want to make sure that everyone who needs a National Health Service dentist can get one, including pregnant women and new mothers. The Government plans to tackle the challenges for patient...
Answered 12 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordMedia: EducationDepartment for Science, Innovation and TechnologyTabled 5 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 29226More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, how much funding the Government has allocated to media literacy initiatives since 4 July 2024; and what recent assessment he has made of the impact of those initiatives on media literac
Answer: The government is committed to empowering internet users with the skills to engage critically with online content and make informed decisions.Since 2022, nearly £3 million in funding has been provided for media literacy projects. This includes £0.5 millio...
Answered 11 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordLeisure Centres: SalesDepartment for Culture, Media and SportTabled 5 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 29214More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what recent assessment her Department has made of the impact of the sale of local authority leisure facilities on public access to sports and recreation services.
Answer: The Government recognises that leisure facilities are important to communities up and down the country. High quality, inclusive facilities help people get active. Everyone, no matter who they are or where they live, should have access to high quality faci...
Answered 11 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordProject GigabitDepartment for Science, Innovation and TechnologyTabled 5 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 29213More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of the progress of Project Gigabit; how many premises have been connected; and what the status of the outstanding procurements is.
Answer: As of the end of March 2024, over one million premises had been upgraded to gigabit-capable broadband through government-funded programmes. Additionally, more than £2 billion of contracts have been signed to provide gigabit-capable coverage to over a mill...
Answered 11 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordNHS: Artificial IntelligenceDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 4 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 28847More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department plans to allocate funding for (a) secure data environments for data validation and (b) other infrastructure required for AI implementation in the NHS.
Answer: Secure access to data to accelerate research and development is an important lever in delivering the Government’s health and growth missions. Access to National Health Service data across England has been supported by investments in digital infrastructure...
Answered 12 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordNHS: Artificial IntelligenceDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 4 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 28845More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure public engagement with AI implementation in the NHS.
Answer: As part of Government’s five long-term missions, the Department has launched a 10-Year Health Plan to reform the National Health Service and make it fit for the future. The plan will set out an agenda to deliver on the three big shifts needed, to move hea...
Answered 14 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordNHS Trusts: Artificial IntelligenceDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 4 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 28844More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what funding will be made available to NHS trusts to integrate AI technology.
Answer: The NHS AI Lab has already provided £113 million, through the NHS AI Health and Care Awards, to 86 artificial intelligence (AI) technologies, which have been used in 40% of National Health Service acute trusts in England and hundreds of Primary Care Netwo...
Answered 24 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordCancer: Artificial IntelligenceDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 4 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 28843More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of AI integration in health on productivity in (a) radiology and (b) oncology.
Answer: Artificial intelligence (AI) technologies have huge potential in improving productivity across the National Health Service by supporting clinicians with faster and more accurate diagnosis, enhancing clinical decision-making about treatment plans, and redu...
Answered 12 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordNHS: Artificial IntelligenceDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 4 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 28842More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether the (a) 10 Year Health Plan and (b) Long-Term Workforce Plan will link to the AI Opportunities Plan.
Answer: As part of the 10-Year Health Plan we are reviewing how the National Health Service should focus its resources to ensure that it maximises the impact of data and technology. This includes how we can make life easier and more productive for those who work ...
Answered 13 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordCancer: Artificial IntelligenceDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 4 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 28840More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of levels of workforce requirements needed for AI adoption and innovation in (a) radiology and (b) clinical oncology.
Answer: As part of the 10-Year Health Plan, we are reviewing how the National Health Service should focus its resources to ensure it maximises the impact of data and technology. This includes how we can make life easier and more productive for those who work in t...
Answered 12 Feb 2025
Original Parliament recordNHS Trusts: Artificial IntelligenceDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled 4 Feb 2025AnsweredUIN 28838More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department plans to ensure that NHS trusts have access to similar AI technologies by having approved models in line with the provision of medical equipment.
Answer: The Department is working to accelerate the safe, ethical, and effective use of artificial intelligence (AI) across the whole healthcare system. The Department has already provided £113 million, through the NHS AI Health and Care Awards, to 86 AI technolo...
Answered 12 Feb 2025
Original Parliament record
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