Written questions by Morello.

What steps he plans to take to tackle primary healthcare staffing shortages in rural areas with limited local resources.

We acknowledge the urgent challenge of ensuring that rural areas, including West Dorset, have the resources to continue serving their patients. To address this, we will increase capacity in general practices (GPs) and ensure that rural areas have the necessary workforce to provide integrated, patient-centred services.We are committed to training thousands more GPs across the country, including in rural areas. We have also committed to recruiting over 1,000 newly qualified GPs through an £82 million boost to the Additional Roles Reimbursement Scheme, which will increase the number of appointments delivered in GPs. This will increase capacity, secure the future pipeline of GPs, and alleviate the pressure on those currently working in the system.We are tackling the challenges that people in rural areas face when accessing National Health Service dental care. Work is underway to deliver our rescue plan to provide 700,000 more urgent dental appointments, and to recruit new dentists to the areas that need them most. The Golden Hello scheme will see up to 240 dentists receiving payments of £20,000 to work in those areas that need them most, for three years.  To rebuild dentistry in the long term, we will reform the dental contract with the sector, with a focus on prevention and the retention of NHS dentists.Local authorities are required to undertake a pharmaceutical needs assessment every three years to assess whether their population is adequately served, and they must keep these assessments under review. These assessments inform integrated care boards when reviewing applications for NHS pharmacies. The Pharmacy Access Scheme provides additional funding to pharmacies in areas where there are fewer pharmacies. In rural areas where there is no pharmacy, GPs are permitted to dispense medicines. Patients can also choose to access medicines and pharmacy services through any of the nearly 400 NHS online pharmacies that are contractually required to deliver prescription medicines free of charge to patients.

What steps his Department is taking to increase the availability of autism support services for adults in rural areas.

Integrated care systems (ICSs) are responsible for the planning and delivery of health and care services in their local area, including meeting the needs of autistic people in rural communities. Local priorities are set out in the Integrated Care Strategy, which must be informed by local assessments of need. The Department published updated statutory guidance on integrated care strategies in February 2024.On 5 April 2023, NHS England published a national framework and operational guidance to improve outcomes in all-age autism assessment pathways. This guidance will help integrated care boards, including those in rural areas, and the National Health Service to improve outcomes for children, young people, and adults referred to an autism assessment service. The guidance sets out what support should be available before an assessment, and what support should follow a recent diagnosis of autism, based on the available evidence.The importance of supporting rural communities has been recognised by the Chief Medical Officer in his reports, which also recognise the role played by ICSs in understanding local needs and arranging services to meet these needs.

What steps his Department is taking to improve access to primary healthcare services in (a) West Dorset constituency and (b) other rural constituencies.

We acknowledge the urgent challenge of ensuring that rural areas, including West Dorset, have the resources to continue serving their patients. To address this, we will increase capacity in general practices (GPs) and ensure that rural areas have the necessary workforce to provide integrated, patient-centred services.We are committed to training thousands more GPs across the country, including in rural areas. We have also committed to recruiting over 1,000 newly qualified GPs through an £82 million boost to the Additional Roles Reimbursement Scheme, which will increase the number of appointments delivered in GPs. This will increase capacity, secure the future pipeline of GPs, and alleviate the pressure on those currently working in the system.We are tackling the challenges that people in rural areas face when accessing National Health Service dental care. Work is underway to deliver our rescue plan to provide 700,000 more urgent dental appointments, and to recruit new dentists to the areas that need them most. The Golden Hello scheme will see up to 240 dentists receiving payments of £20,000 to work in those areas that need them most, for three years.  To rebuild dentistry in the long term, we will reform the dental contract with the sector, with a focus on prevention and the retention of NHS dentists.Local authorities are required to undertake a pharmaceutical needs assessment every three years to assess whether their population is adequately served, and they must keep these assessments under review. These assessments inform integrated care boards when reviewing applications for NHS pharmacies. The Pharmacy Access Scheme provides additional funding to pharmacies in areas where there are fewer pharmacies. In rural areas where there is no pharmacy, GPs are permitted to dispense medicines. Patients can also choose to access medicines and pharmacy services through any of the nearly 400 NHS online pharmacies that are contractually required to deliver prescription medicines free of charge to patients.

Communities and Local Government, what steps she is taking to support local authorities in sparsely populated regions, in the context of varying levels of per capita costs for delivering services.

We have announced £1.3 billion of new grant funding in 2025/26 for local government to deliver core services, of which at least £600 million is for social care.After years of delaying much needed fair funding reform, we will update and improve the approach to funding allocations within the Local Government Finance Settlement by redistributing funding to ensure that it reflects an up-to-date assessment of need and local resources.This will start with a deprivation-based approach in 2025-26 with additional funding targeted to the places that need it most. Broader redistribution of funding will follow through a multi-year settlement from 2026-27.We will be publishing a policy statement in late November, where we will set out our intentions for reform of the local government finance system.

What steps he plans to take through social care reforms to help (a) reduce waiting times for and (b) increase access to care services in rural areas.

Local authorities are responsible for assessing individuals’ care and support needs and, where eligible, for meeting those needs. Where individuals do not meet the eligibility threshold, they can get support from their local authorities in making their own arrangements for care services, as set out in the Care Act 2014. Local authorities have a further duty to shape their care markets and commission a diverse range of care and support services that enable people to access quality care.The majority of grant funding for adult social care is distributed to local authorities using the Adult Social Care Relative Needs Formula. This is designed to account for factors that affect the differences in the need for, and cost of, adult social care services that are outside of local authorities’ control, including population, income and wealth, informal care support, wages and prices, and population sparsity.We recognise that there are challenges in adult social care. Lord Darzi’s report indicated a growing gap between requests and those receiving publicly funded care, and some people are waiting too long to get the care they need. Long-term reform is needed in adult social care, and we will work with the sector to create a sustainable care system across all constituencies that supports people to live independent and dignified lives.In the short term, the Government is providing at least £600 million of new grant funding for social care in 2025/26, as part of the broader estimated real-terms uplift to core local government spending power of approximately 3.2%. We will set out further details at the Local Government Finance Settlement.In addition, the Care Quality Commission (CQC) local authority assessments consider the performance of the delivery of Care Act 2014 duties. If the CQC identifies that a local authority has failed or is failing its functions to an acceptable standard, my Rt Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care has powers to intervene. The CQC has published twelve local authority ratings and reports.

What steps his Department plans to take to ensure that people in (a) West Dorset constituency and (b) other rural areas receive equitable access to social care support.

Local authorities are responsible for assessing individuals’ care and support needs and, where eligible, for meeting those needs. Where individuals do not meet the eligibility threshold, they can get support from their local authorities in making their own arrangements for care services, as set out in the Care Act 2014. Local authorities have a further duty to shape their care markets and commission a diverse range of care and support services that enable people to access quality care.The majority of grant funding for adult social care is distributed to local authorities using the Adult Social Care Relative Needs Formula. This is designed to account for factors that affect the differences in the need for, and cost of, adult social care services that are outside of local authorities’ control, including population, income and wealth, informal care support, wages and prices, and population sparsity.We recognise that there are challenges in adult social care. Lord Darzi’s report indicated a growing gap between requests and those receiving publicly funded care, and some people are waiting too long to get the care they need. Long-term reform is needed in adult social care, and we will work with the sector to create a sustainable care system across all constituencies that supports people to live independent and dignified lives.In the short term, the Government is providing at least £600 million of new grant funding for social care in 2025/26, as part of the broader estimated real-terms uplift to core local government spending power of approximately 3.2%. We will set out further details at the Local Government Finance Settlement.In addition, the Care Quality Commission (CQC) local authority assessments consider the performance of the delivery of Care Act 2014 duties. If the CQC identifies that a local authority has failed or is failing its functions to an acceptable standard, my Rt Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care has powers to intervene. The CQC has published twelve local authority ratings and reports.

If she will undertake a review of police funding allocations.

The government will consider police funding, including the allocation of funding to forces, in the round as part of phase 2 of the Spending Review.

What recent assessment she has made of the potential impact of the current funding model on rural constituencies.

The majority of public funding for police forces in England and Wales is provided by the Home Office and is agreed by the House of Commons on an annual basis at the police funding settlement. Each year the Home Office produces a Police Grant Report which is published and voted on by Parliament and contains grant funding allocations for the following year to be paid out under the Police Act 1996.The funding formula used for distributing Home Office Police Main Grant divides funds between different activities that the police undertake. A portion of total funding is also distributed according to population sparsity, to address the specific needs of rural forces. A copy of the most recent Grant Report for 2024-25 has been placed in the Libraries of both Houses and can be found online:https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/65b913a1ee7d49000d9849d4/E03063051_-_Police_Grant_Report__England_and_Wales__24-25_Accessible.pdfAs announced at the Autumn budget 2024, the settlement will increase the core government grant for police forces in 2025-26 and help support frontline policing levels across the country, force level funding allocations for the financial year 2025-26 will be confirmed at the forthcoming police funding settlement. Funding for future years beyond 2025-26 will be set out in phase 2 of the Spending Review.

What steps the Department is taking to ensure rural police forces receive adequate funding to meet increasing demands in areas with low-population density.

The majority of public funding for police forces in England and Wales is provided by the Home Office and is agreed by the House of Commons on an annual basis at the police funding settlement. Each year the Home Office produces a Police Grant Report which is published and voted on by Parliament and contains grant funding allocations for the following year to be paid out under the Police Act 1996.The funding formula used for distributing Home Office Police Main Grant divides funds between different activities that the police undertake. A portion of total funding is also distributed according to population sparsity, to address the specific needs of rural forces. A copy of the most recent Grant Report for 2024-25 has been placed in the Libraries of both Houses and can be found online:https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/65b913a1ee7d49000d9849d4/E03063051_-_Police_Grant_Report__England_and_Wales__24-25_Accessible.pdfAs announced at the Autumn budget 2024, the settlement will increase the core government grant for police forces in 2025-26 and help support frontline policing levels across the country, force level funding allocations for the financial year 2025-26 will be confirmed at the forthcoming police funding settlement. Funding for future years beyond 2025-26 will be set out in phase 2 of the Spending Review.

What steps her Department is taking to accelerate the rollout of public charging points.

The Government is committed to accelerating the roll-out of charging infrastructure so that everyone, no matter where they live or work, can make the transition to an electric vehicle (EV). As of 1 November, there are over 71,000 publicly available charging devices in the UK. The Local EV Infrastructure (LEVI) Fund supports local authorities in England to work with industry to transform the availability of EV charging for drivers without off-street parking and will support the installation of tens of thousands of local chargers. The Government confirmed in the October 2024 Budget that it will continue to support the uptake of EVs by investing over £200 million in 2025/26 to accelerate chargepoint rollout.

Communities and Local Government, if she will make it her policy to review the funding formula for local authorities to increase the distribution of funding provided to communities in rural areas, in the context of levels costs for providing services in sparsely populated areas.

After years of delaying much needed fair funding reform, we will update and improve the approach to funding allocations within the Local Government Finance Settlement by redistributing funding to ensure that it reflects an up-to-date assessment of need and local resources.This will start with a deprivation-based approach in 2025-26 with additional funding targeted to the places that need it most. Broader redistribution of funding will follow through a multi-year settlement from 2026-27.We will be publishing a policy statement in late November, where we will set out our intentions for reform of the local government finance system.

What steps he plans to take to improve access to social care in underserved regions where the amount of care providers is lower per capita.

Local authorities are responsible for assessing individuals’ care and support needs and, where eligible, for meeting those needs. Where individuals do not meet the eligibility threshold, they can get support from their local authorities in making their own arrangements for care services, as set out in the Care Act 2014. Local authorities have a further duty to shape their care markets and commission a diverse range of care and support services that enable people to access quality care.The majority of grant funding for adult social care is distributed to local authorities using the Adult Social Care Relative Needs Formula. This is designed to account for factors that affect the differences in the need for, and cost of, adult social care services that are outside of local authorities’ control, including population, income and wealth, informal care support, wages and prices, and population sparsity.We recognise that there are challenges in adult social care. Lord Darzi’s report indicated a growing gap between requests and those receiving publicly funded care, and some people are waiting too long to get the care they need. Long-term reform is needed in adult social care, and we will work with the sector to create a sustainable care system across all constituencies that supports people to live independent and dignified lives.In the short term, the Government is providing at least £600 million of new grant funding for social care in 2025/26, as part of the broader estimated real-terms uplift to core local government spending power of approximately 3.2%. We will set out further details at the Local Government Finance Settlement.In addition, the Care Quality Commission (CQC) local authority assessments consider the performance of the delivery of Care Act 2014 duties. If the CQC identifies that a local authority has failed or is failing its functions to an acceptable standard, my Rt Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care has powers to intervene. The CQC has published twelve local authority ratings and reports.

What steps his Department is taking to help improve the sustainability of pharmacies in rural communities that lack alternative healthcare access.

Pharmacies play a vital role in our healthcare system. We are committed to expanding the role of pharmacies and better utilising the skills of pharmacists and pharmacy technicians. That includes making prescribing part of the services delivered by community pharmacists, as we shift care from the hospital to the community.Integrated care boards (ICBs) are responsible for understanding the health needs of their areas, and commissioning services to meet those needs. Local authorities are required to undertake a pharmaceutical needs assessment every three years to assess whether their population, such as the constituency of West Dorset, are adequately served, and they must keep these assessments under review. These assessments inform ICBs when reviewing applications for National Health Service pharmacies. The Pharmacy Access Scheme provides additional funding to pharmacies in areas where there are fewer pharmacies. In rural areas where there is no pharmacy, general practices are permitted to dispense medicines. Patients can also choose to access medicines and pharmacy services through any of the nearly 400 NHS online pharmacies that are contractually required to deliver prescription medicines free of charge to patients.Now that the Budget for Government has been set, we will shortly be resuming our consultation with Community Pharmacy England regarding the funding arrangements. We are unable to say more until these have been concluded.

What steps he plans to take to support community pharmacies in West Dorset

Pharmacies play a vital role in our healthcare system. We are committed to expanding the role of pharmacies and better utilising the skills of pharmacists and pharmacy technicians. That includes making prescribing part of the services delivered by community pharmacists, as we shift care from the hospital to the community.Integrated care boards (ICBs) are responsible for understanding the health needs of their areas, and commissioning services to meet those needs. Local authorities are required to undertake a pharmaceutical needs assessment every three years to assess whether their population, such as the constituency of West Dorset, are adequately served, and they must keep these assessments under review. These assessments inform ICBs when reviewing applications for National Health Service pharmacies. The Pharmacy Access Scheme provides additional funding to pharmacies in areas where there are fewer pharmacies. In rural areas where there is no pharmacy, general practices are permitted to dispense medicines. Patients can also choose to access medicines and pharmacy services through any of the nearly 400 NHS online pharmacies that are contractually required to deliver prescription medicines free of charge to patients.Now that the Budget for Government has been set, we will shortly be resuming our consultation with Community Pharmacy England regarding the funding arrangements. We are unable to say more until these have been concluded.

What steps his Department is taking to incentivise private sector investment into research for (a) brain tumours and (b) other rare diseases.

The Department is committed to implementing recommendations from Lord O'Shaughnessy’s independent review of commercial clinical trials, maximising our potential to be a world leader, and developing a more competitive, efficient, and accessible clinical research system.The Department aims to ensure that all patients, including those with brain tumours and rare diseases, have access to cutting-edge clinical research and innovative, lifesaving treatments.The Government funds research through The Department of Health and Social Care funded National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) and the Medical Research Council (MRC), sponsored by the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology. The NIHR and the MRC are jointly funding the Rare Diseases Research Platform UK, a £14 million initiative made up of eleven research centres based at universities, which work collaboratively with industry and charities to accelerate understanding, diagnosis, and therapy of rare diseases.Additionally, Genomics England, a company owned by The Department, partners with the world’s leading pharmaceutical companies and biotechnology firms through their Discovery Forum to accelerate new treatment development.

Whether she has made a recent assessment of the potential merits of restricting the use of live facial recognition software.

Live facial technology is being used effectively by some police forces to identify suspects more quickly and accurately. Its use is governed by data protection, equality, and human rights legislation supplemented by specific policing guidance.At a Westminster Hall Debate on live facial recognition on 13 November, I was clear that the government wants to take time to think carefully about how much support the police may need from Government and Parliament to set and manage the rules for the use of this technology.

If he will make a comparative assessment of funding allocated to (a) brain tumours and (b) other cancers in the last five years; and if he will take steps to increase funding available for brain tumours.

The Department spends £1.5 billion each year on research through its research delivery arm, the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR), with cancer the largest area of spend at over £121.8 million in 2022/23 reflecting its high priority. The Department does not currently have plans to make a comparative assessment of funding allocated to brain and other cancers in the last five yearsThe NIHR has taken steps on opportunities for brain cancer research funding. In September 2024, the NIHR announced new research funding opportunities for brain cancer research spanning both adult and paediatric populations. This includes a national NIHR Brain Tumour Research Consortium, to ensure the most promising research opportunities are made available to adult and child patients and a new funding call to generate high quality evidence in brain tumour care, support and rehabilitation.We will get the National Health Service diagnosing cancer, including brain tumours, earlier and treating it faster so more patients survive, and we will improve patients’ experience across the system. To do this, we will address the challenges in diagnostic waiting times, providing the number of computed tomography, magnetic resonance imaging and other tests that are needed to reduce cancer waits.

What steps his Department is taking to support small rural businesses in West Dorset constituency to access export markets.

DBT is supporting companies like Baboo Gelato, based just outside Dorchester, to take their first steps into exporting. UK businesses, including those in West Dorset constituency, can access DBT’s wealth of export support via Great.gov.uk. This comprises a online support offer and our wider network of support, including Export Champions, the Export Academy, our International Markets network, and UK Export Finance. Alongside this, our International Trade Advisers use their extensive experience of exporting and knowledge of the needs of SMEs in their sectors and regions to provide one-to-one tailored support to businesses.

What steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to improve access to mental health services for police officers in rural constituencies.

The Government has been clear that the wellbeing of our police is a priority. We want to ensure that all police officers and staff have the appropriate support in place to thrive in their careers and continue to serve the public.  Chief Constables have a responsibility to manage their workforce effectively and this includes ensuring the wellbeing of all officers and staff. Through the Police Covenant, we continue to fund the National Police Wellbeing Service to provide evidence-based guidance, advice, tools and resources to support forces and individual officers, including guidance on mental health support for the police. The NPWS is helping all forces to identify where there is most risk of impacts on mental health. They are working with forces, developing work to build resilience, and putting in place support for those who need it.

Media and Sport, if she will take steps to undertake a review of the capital funding requirements of grassroots sports clubs for the sustainable, long-term maintenance of their facilities.

The Government is committed to improving access to high quality sport and physical activity opportunities for everyone, including those with disabilities. This is central to achieving the aims set out in the Government’s manifesto around the Health and Opportunity Missions. The Government will support more people to be active wherever they live, whether in cities or the countryside.We recognise that grassroots sports clubs are at the heart of communities up and down the country. These provide important places for people of all ages to be active, bring communities together and improve their mental and physical wellbeing.That is why this Government has committed to continue funding for grassroots facilities. £123 million will be invested UK-wide in grassroots facilities via the Multi-Sport Grassroots Facilities Programme throughout 2024/25, working with our delivery partner, the Football Foundation.