Written questions by Chambers.

Food and Rural Affairs, what recent assessments his Department has made of the (a) functionality and (b) operational effectiveness of the Border Target Operating Model.

Defra continues to monitor and review the impact of the Border Target Operating Model. We are working closely with industry, trade partners and enforcement agencies to minimise disruption and costs to trade, while continuing to protect our biosecurity. The effectiveness of the import controls was demonstrated throughout September and October 2024 by the interception at Sevington of consignments of plants infested with Pochazia Shantungensis, a fruit tree pest native to China but now present in mainland Europe. The consignments were destroyed, preventing the potential for a damaging outbreak for UK fruit growers. In January 2025, following a confirmed case of Foort and Mouth Disease (FMD) in Germany, Defra has issued instructions to officials at Border Control Posts, ensuring all impacted commodities are selected for checks at the border. Such measures prevent significant economic losses due to production losses in the affected animals such as reduced milk yields as well as loss of access to foreign markets for animals, meat and milk for affected countries.

What the average wait time in the Royal Hampshire County Hospital's Accident and Emergency department was between December 2024 and January 2025.

The data is not available in the format requested. The latest provisional published data for the median average time spent at emergency departments at the Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust for November 2024 was 218 minutes. Information relating to December 2024 will be published on 13 February 2025.

What steps he plans to take to tackle the shortage of social care packages in (a) Royal Hampshire County Hospital and (b) Winchester.

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 and to commission services 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 Government is supporting local authorities by making available up to £3.7 billion of additional funding for social care authorities in 2025/26, which includes an £880 million increase in the Social Care Grant.

What the cost of agency staff employed by Royal Hampshire County Hospital was in the last 12 months.

The information requested is not available. Information regarding expenditure on agency staffing will be held locally by the National Health Service trust, the Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. NHS England collects some information on the staffing expenditure of NHS bodies, but this information has not been centrally validated.

What steps his Department is taking to help increase the number of (a) counsellors and (b) psychotherapists in the mental health workforce.

The National Health Service workforce has been overworked for years, leading to staff becoming burnt out and demoralised and, while there has been growth in the mental health workforce over recent years, more is needed. That is why, as part of our mission to build an NHS that is fit for the future, we will recruit an additional 8,500 mental health workers to reduce waiting times and provide faster treatment. We recognise that bringing in the staff needed will take time. We are working with NHS England on options to deliver this expansion of the mental health workforce.More broadly, we have launched a 10-Year Health Plan to reform the NHS. This plan will set out a bold agenda to deliver on the three big shifts needed to move healthcare from hospital to the community, from analogue to digital, and from sickness to prevention. A central part of this will be our workforce and how we ensure we train and provide the staff, technology, and infrastructure the NHS needs to care for patients across our communities.This summer we will publish a refreshed Long Term Workforce Plan to deliver the transformed health service we will build over the next decade and treat patients on time again. We will ensure the NHS has the right people, in the right places, with the right skills to deliver the care patients need, when they need it.

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the impact of the UK's exit from the EU on the movement of animals between the UK and the EU for breeding programmes; and what steps his Department is taking to mitigate any post-Brexit regulatory barriers between the UK and the EU affecting these movements.

The UK’s departure introduced new rules and procedures for GB exporters, including compliance with EU import controls. Since being granted third country listed status by the EU on 28 December 2020, the UK has continued to export live animals for breeding purposes under these rules. The UK-EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA) provides a framework to manage sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) controls proportionate to biosecurity risks. Defra keeps the movement of animals for breeding programmes under review and works with stakeholders and EU Member States to identify and mitigate challenges in SPS requirements and reduce unnecessary trade barriers. This includes efforts to streamline SPS checks, ensuring efficient and safe animal movements. EU import controls require livestock to enter via designated Border Control Posts (BCPs), which can limit capacity for live animal exports. To address this, Defra regularly engages in technical discussions with EU Member States to resolve practical issues, advocate for increased BCP capacity, and improve routes for live animal exports. These efforts aim to safeguard biosecurity while supporting GB exporters and maintaining trade flows.

What steps his Department is taking to help integrate accredited (a) counsellors and (b) psychotherapists into mental health support teams for students.

We know that too many children and young people are not receiving the mental health care they need, and that waits for mental health services are far too long. We will provide access to a specialist mental health professional in every school so that mental health conditions, such as anxiety and depression, can be identified early on and prevented from developing into more serious conditions in later life. We are working with our colleagues at NHS England and the Department for Education to consider options to deliver this commitment.Department for Education guidance encourages mental health support teams to work with other existing professionals, such as school or college-based counsellors, educational psychologists, school nurses, pastoral care, educational welfare officers, voluntary, community and social enterprise organisations, local authority provision, primary care, and NHS Children and Young People Mental Health services.

What proportion of NHS funding has been allocated to mental health services in each year since 2015; and whether this funding met the NHS mental health investment standard.

The following table shows the recurrent National Health Service baseline, the total forecast mental health spend, and the proportion of NHS funding forecasted to be allocated to mental health services, which is only available in the format required under section 3(2) of the Health and Care Act 2022 from 2022/23 to 2024/25: 2022/232023/242024/25Recurrent NHS baseline£142,400,000,000£154,700,000,000£164,000,000,000Total forecast mental health spend£12,600,000,000£13,900,000,000£14,800,000,000Mental health share of recurrent baseline8.87%9%9.01%Source: Department of Health and Social Care Written Ministerial Statements.The forecast figures for mental health spend are different from those in the NHS Mental Health Dashboard, which also includes spend on learning disabilities and dementia. The dashboard also compares integrated care board (ICB) mental health spend to ICB allocations, whereas the figures above compare projected total mental health spend to the recurrent NHS Mandate, which includes spending across ICBs, service development funding, and specialised commissioning.The following table shows the number of Clinical Commissioning Groups (CCGs), now integrated care boards (ICBs), meeting the Mental Health Investment Standard (MHIS), each year from 2016/17 to 2023/24:YearNumber of CCGs, now ICBs, meeting the MHIS2016/17177 out of 209 CCGs2017/18186 out of 207 CCGs2018/19179 out of 195 CCGs2019/20181 out of 191 CCGs2020/21135 out of 135 CCGs2021/22106 out of 106 CCGs2022/2341 out of 42 ICBs2023/2442 out of 42 ICBsSource: NHS Mental Health Dashboard, NHS EnglandNote: between 2020/21 and 2021/22, there was a methodology change in how CCG base allocation was calculated.Calculation of the MHIS does not include spend on learning disabilities, autism, dementia, and specialised commissioning.

What proportion of extra NHS funding announced at the budget will be allocated to NHS mental health services.

The NHS Operational and Planning Guidance for 2024/25 makes clear that integrated care boards are expected to continue to meet the Mental Health Investment Standard by increasing their investment in mental health services in line with their overall increase in funding for the year. My Rt Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care will set out expectations for mental health funding, including its share of overall National Health Service expenditure in 2025/26, in due course, as required under section 3(2) of the Health and Care Act 2022.

If he will make it his policy to maintain the Mental Health Investment Standard.

The NHS Operational and Planning Guidance for 2024/25 makes clear that integrated care boards are expected to continue to meet the Mental Health Investment Standard by increasing their investment in mental health services in line with their overall increase in funding for the year. My Rt Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care will set out expectations for mental health funding, including its share of overall National Health Service expenditure in 2025/26, in due course, as required under section 3(2) of the Health and Care Act 2022.

With reference to paragraph 2.40 of the Autumn Budget 2024, published on 30 October, if he will make an estimate of the number of pharmacies that will pay increased National Insurance contributions (a) nationally and (b) by constituency.

We have taken necessary decisions to fix the foundations in the public finances at the Autumn Budget, which enabled the Spending Review settlement of a £22.6 billion increase in resource spending for the Department, from 2023/24 outturn to 2025/26. The employer National Insurance rise will be implemented April 2025, and the Department will set out further details on the allocation of funding for next year at the earliest opportunity.

With reference to paragraph 2.40 of the Autumn Budget 2024, published on 30 October, whether he has made an estimate of the (a) overall cost to pharmacies and (b) the estimated average cost per business in the pharmacy sector of the proposed increase to employer National Insurance contributions.

We have taken necessary decisions to fix the foundations in the public finances at the Autumn Budget, which enabled the Spending Review settlement of a £22.6 billion increase in resource spending for the Department, from 2023/24 outturn to 2025/26. The employer National Insurance rise will be implemented April 2025, and the Department will set out further details on the allocation of funding for next year at the earliest opportunity.

With reference to paragraph 2.40 of the Autumn Budget 2024, published on 30 October, whether he has made an estimate of the total cost to pharmacy businesses of the proposed increase in employer National Insurance contributions (a) nationally and (b) by constituency.

We have taken necessary decisions to fix the foundations in the public finances at the Autumn Budget, which enabled the Spending Review settlement of a £22.6 billion increase in resource spending for the Department, from 2023/24 outturn to 2025/26. The employer National Insurance rise will be implemented April 2025, and the Department will set out further details on the allocation of funding for next year at the earliest opportunity.

With reference to paragraph 3.46 of the Autumn Budget 2024, published on 30 October, how she plans to distribute the £300 million for further education in England.

This government is committed to driving economic growth and supporting opportunity for all, and further education (FE) is central to this. The government is providing an additional £300 million for FE to ensure young people are developing the skills they need to succeed, and an additional £300 million to support colleges to maintain, improve and ensure suitability of their estate. This funding will benefit all FE colleges. We will set out how the additional funding will be distributed in due course.

Whether she plans to change the level of train fares on South Western Railways when it is taken into public ownership.

Whilst it is our ambition through public ownership to deliver a more affordable railway, any long-term changes or concessions made to rail fares policy require balancing against the potential impacts on passengers, taxpayers and the railway. Through future legislation, we will set out the role Great British Railways will have in fares, ticketing, and other operational aspects of the railway.

Innovation and Technology, what steps his Department is taking to help accelerate the rollout of (a) 4G and (b) 5G in (i) central Winchester and (ii) other urban areas with limited mobile data availability.

This government wants all areas of the UK, including urban areas such as Winchester, to benefit from good quality mobile coverage. Our ambition is for all populated areas to have higher-quality standalone 5G by 2030, and to increase 4G coverage to 95% of the UK landmass by the end of 2025 through the Shared Rural Network programme. This government is committed to ensuring we have the right policy and regulatory framework to support investment and competition. As part of this work, the Government intends to reform the planning system to make it easier to build and deploy digital infrastructure.

Innovation and Technology, whether his Department is taking steps to support people with the cost of full fibre to premises connections in commercially viable areas where providers (a) do not connect premises and (b) require substantial fees.

The government does not support individuals with the cost of obtaining a full fibre connection in commercially viable areas. However, we have deployed a range of measures to support roll-out in commercially viable areas to make it as easy and as cost-effective as possible for operators to rollout their networks. For instance, we have worked with Ofcom to create regulation that facilitates infrastructure sharing between operators. We are also working with local authorities to overcome planning barriers

What steps he is taking to ensure that (a) emergency respite and (b) mental health support is available for unpaid carers in crisis.

The Government is committed to ensuring that families have the support that they need. We want to ensure that people who care for family and friends are better able to look after their own physical and mental health and wellbeing.Local authorities have duties to support people caring for their family and friends. The Care Act 2014 requires local authorities to deliver a wide range of sustainable, high-quality care and support services, including support such as respite and breaks for carers. The Better Care Fund also includes funding that can be used for unpaid carer support, including for short breaks and respite services for carers.As part of the Carers Partnership in the Health and Wellbeing Alliance, the Carers Trust has published a Carer Contingency Campaign Pack. This will help support local carer organisations’ work with local partners to deliver carer contingency plans for carers in their area. Further information on the pack is available at the following link:https://carers.org/resources/all-resources/150-carer-contingency-campaign-pack-supporting-carers-and-strengthening-local-care-systemsWe know that people, including unpaid carers, with mental health issues are not getting the support or care they deserve, which is why we will fix the broken system to ensure we give mental health the same attention and focus as physical health. This includes recruiting 8,500 more mental health workers, introducing specialist mental health professionals in every school, rolling out Young Futures hubs in every community, and modernising the Mental Health Act.

Whether he is taking steps to encourage increase his international counterparts to increase financial support for low- and middle-income countries in combating antimicrobial resistance at the Global High-Level Ministerial Meeting in Saudi Arabia.

The United Kingdom has long championed improved global finance to address anti-microbial resistance (AMR). The Department has committed £450 million of Official Development Assistance budget to tackle AMR in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) through improving laboratory capacity and surveillance on resistance. The UK has also funded £106.6 million through the Global AMR Innovation Fund to develop innovative solutions to AMR which focus on the needs of LMICs.We welcome the adoption of the political declaration on AMR at the 79th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) and its call for the World Bank to work with the Quadripartite to facilitate improved access to existing funding for AMR.I attended the 4th Global High-Level Ministerial Conference on Antimicrobial Resistance in Jeddah on 15 and 16 November 2024. At the event I worked with other global leaders to secure progress that is being made to deliver the commitments agreed at the UNGA High Level meeting and build momentum on the actions needed, particularly on sustainable financing to tackle AMR.

What assessment he has made of the adequacy of access to (a) sporting and (b) physical activities for (i) children and (ii) young people with cerebral palsy.

We have not made such an assessment. However, the Government’s new mission-led approach puts health, and children and young people at the heart of our priorities. The Government aims to provide all children, including disabled children and disabled young people, with opportunities to access high-quality sport and physical activity, especially those who are less likely to be active.The Chief Medical Officer’s physical activity guidelines for disabled children highlights the importance of tailoring activities to meet individual needs, breaking an activity into chunks and making everyday movement enjoyable. Providing these inclusive opportunities for disabled children is a core principle of the Department of Education’s Inclusion 2024 programme, and the Government funded School Games Network, which works with organisations, including Cerebral Palsy Sport, to create inclusive environments in sport and physical activity for children with cerebral palsy.