Written questions by Anderson.

Whether her Department has asked police forces to provide data on repeat speeding offenders to inform future road safety policy.

Awaiting answer.

What assessment she has made of the levels of the use of dogs at the MBR Acres facility in Cambridgeshire; and whether she plans to take steps to end the breeding and supply of dogs for scientific tes

Awaiting answer.

What steps he is taking to expand access to naloxone in communities.

Awaiting answer.

What steps he is taking to help ensure the routine freezing of suitable brain tumour tissue samples to improve patient access to genomic testing, personalised treatments and research.

Awaiting answer.

What steps he is taking to improve access to treatments for pancreatic cancer and increase survival rates.

Awaiting answer.

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the environmental and animal welfare impacts of the breeding, release and shooting of game birds, and whether she plans to introduce a ban on these prac

Awaiting answer.

What steps his Department is taking to improve early diagnosis of pancreatic cancer, and whether he is supporting the development of new scanning technologies or screening methods to detect pancrea

The Government is committed to improving outcomes for people affected by pancreatic cancer through earlier diagnosis, faster treatment and increased access to innovation. The National Cancer Plan for England identifies earlier diagnosis as a key priority ...

If he will review the NHS Federated Data Platform contract with Palantir ahead of the 2027 break clause, in the context of reported concerns about undisclosed access to identifiable patient data an

The NHS Federated Data Platform (NHS FDP) safely connects information from different systems across the National Health Service into a single, secure environment. This allows staff to co-ordinate care better to improve outcomes for patients. The NHS FDP...

What assessment he has made of the impact of corridor care and delayed transfers from emergency departments on patient safety, including the reported 16,000 deaths annually; and what steps his Depa

The Government and NHS England are clear that corridor care is not acceptable and should never become standard practice. The figure of 16,000 deaths annually is a reported estimate rather than an official Government statistic. However, the Department reco...

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what representations her Department has made to the Rapid Support Forces on their requirement for international NGOs to register in Darfur; and what steps she is taking to he

The Government remains deeply concerned by the recent directives issued by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) Humanitarian Agency, that requires humanitarian organisations, including the UN, to register their presence in areas of RSF-control or face expulsion...

When the Government will publish its response to the Women and Equalities Committee’s report on the health impacts of breast implants and other cosmetic procedures.

The Government recognises the important work of the Women and Equalities Committee (WEC) and remains committed to addressing longstanding concerns around safety in the cosmetic sector.We will issue the Government’s response to the WEC report on cosmetic p...

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that (a) the UK Forest Risk Commodities Regulations operate on a shared responsibility basis and (b) compliance costs are borne by downstr

The Government recognises the urgency of taking action to ensure that UK consumption of forest risk commodities is not driving deforestation. The Government is currently considering its approach to addressing the impact of the use of forest risk commoditi...

Food and Rural Affairs, whether she plans to launch a consultation on phasing out the use of carbon dioxide to slaughter pigs.

As set out in this Government’s animal welfare strategy, Defra will consult on banning carbon dioxide gas stunning of pigs and on possible timescales for phasing out this method. Further details will be set out later this year.

What steps he is taking to ensure that patients with suspected craniocervical instability in the context of hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos syndrome are not (a) misdiagnosed and (b) inappropriately manag

The Government recognises the challenges faced by patients with hypermobile Ehlers‑Danlos syndromes (hEDS) and associated conditions, including suspected craniocervical instability (CCI), which can be complex to diagnose and manage.In England, decisions a...

Whether she plans to extend business rates relief to independent gyms and fitness centres.

Pubs rents in business rates valuations are analysed differently to some other sectors. While most hospitality and leisure properties are valued by comparing the size of the property, pubs are valued by comparing their turnover potential. Industry bodies have highlighted concerns with how costs are accounted for in this methodology, particularly during periods of high inflation. The Government agrees this needs to be looked at and is therefore launching a review which will explore how pubs are valued for business rates. In the meantime, pubs are being provided with additional support. Independent gyms and fitness centres will continue to benefit from the wider £4.3 billion support package announced at Budget, which protects against ratepayers seeing large overnight increases in bills. The Government has also introduced new permanently lower multipliers for eligible retail, hospitality and leisure properties. These new multipliers are worth nearly £1 billion per year and benefit over 750,000 properties, including gyms and fitness centres. As a result, over half of ratepayers see no bill increases this year, including 23 per cent whose bills go down. Most properties seeing increases have them capped at 15 per cent or less this year, or £800 for the smallest properties.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to her Oral Statement of 5 February 2026 on Sudan, Official Report, column 438, what steps her Department is taking to strengthen closer work through local partners in Sudan.

I refer the Hon Member to the comments made by the Foreign Secretary in her article for the Daily Telegraph on 15 April marking the third anniversary of the war in Sudan, where she said:Amid all this horror, another Sudan endures, defined not by violence, but by courage. Across the country, civilians continue to step forward where the state has collapsed, working to keep their communities alive.Local emergency responders travel neighbourhood by neighbourhood, providing food, water and medicine in conditions of danger and deprivation that few could imagine. They are unpaid, unaligned, and often targeted by the warring parties precisely because of the alternative model of life they represent.They are not simply delivering aid. They are preserving the social fabric of their country and showing that Sudan's future does not belong to armed men battling for power, but to citizens committed to dignity and coexistence. They must be recognised as the rightful architects of Sudan's future.That is why we are protecting the UK's humanitarian support to Sudan and doubling our funding to these local responders, helping them to reach nearly two million people. Our aid will support that local leadership, not overshadow it. That is not only more effective; it is how a peaceful Sudan will be rebuilt.

With reference to the National Cancer Plan for England, when his Department plans to publish an implementation plan and timeline for its delivery.

The National Cancer Plan, published on the 4 February, sets out several commitments and ambitions, to be delivered within the next 10 years. The plan sets out in tables at the end of each chapter what actions we will take and when we will implement them. There is no plan to publish an additional implementation plan, for this reason.A reformed National Cancer Board will support and monitor the delivery of the commitments and ambitions and will be the forum for updating on progress, exposing issues, and for injecting scrutiny. The board will provide regular updates to ministers and support development of an annual progress report.

When he plans to appoint the independent co‑chair of the National Cancer Plan implementation board, and what criteria will be used to ensure that the role is independent of government.

The National Cancer Plan, published on 4 February 2026, sets out several commitments and ambitions, to be delivered within the next 10 years. The role of the reformed National Cancer Board will be to support and monitor the delivery of the commitments and ambitions and to provide regular updates to ministers. The board will be co-chaired by the Director General for Planned Care in the Department, as well as an independent representative. It is important to choose the most suitable appointment process for selecting an independent representative to co-chair the board. To ensure that the co-chair of the board is independent of the Government, officials from NHS England and the Department are carefully following the required appointments procedures. An appointment will be made following all required ministerial approvals. The position of co-chair is presently being advertised on the GOV.UK website, with further information available at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/department-of-health-and-social-care/about/recruitment

What assessment his Department has made of (a) the prevalence of respiratory disease and (b) the number of emergency hospital admissions for respiratory conditions in Putney constituency compared with national averages during the last five years.

Data is available for emergency Finished Admission Episodes (FAEs) where there was a primary diagnosis of 'respiratory conditions’. The following table shows the number of FAEs where there was a primary diagnosis of 'respiratory conditions’ for Putney and England, for activity in English National Health Service hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector, for 2024/25 and provisionally for 2025/26:Westminster Parliamentary Constituency of Residence2024/25 (August 2024 to March 2025)2025/26 (April 2025 to December 2025)Putney725705England612,855511,558Source: Hospital Episode Statistics, NHS England. Available data on trends in respiratory conditions can be found on the Department’s Fingertips dataset. Data is not available by parliamentary constituency. Data is available at regional, county, unitary authority, and integrated care board level. Information for Wandsworth can be found at the following link: https://fingertips.phe.org.uk/search/Respiratory#page/1/gid/1/pat/15/par/E92000001/ati/502/are/E09000032/iid/90933/age/314/sex/4/cat/-1/ctp/-1/yrr/1/cid/4/tbm/1

Whether his Department has considered establishing a national multi‑disciplinary team for neurosurgery for craniocervical instability (CCI) to improve outcomes for people with EDS, HSD and related conditions.

The Department recognises that people with Ehlers‑Danlos syndromes (EDS), hypermobility spectrum disorders (HSD), and related conditions such as postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome, mast cell activation disorders, myalgic encephalomyelitis, also known as chronic fatigue syndrome, and Long Covid often experience complex, multisystem symptoms that require joined‑up care.There is currently no single National Health Service service specification covering all these conditions collectively. However, care for people with EDS, HSD, and overlapping conditions is supported through a range of existing NHS service specifications, clinical guidelines, and frameworks. NHS England continues to keep service specifications and clinical frameworks under review to ensure they reflect emerging evidence and patient need.The Department also recognises the concerns raised by patients and clinicians about craniocervical instability (CCI), particularly where it is suspected in people with EDS, HSD, and related conditions.At present, the Department has not established a national multi‑disciplinary neurosurgical service for CCI. Neurosurgical services in England are commissioned by NHS England and are provided through established regional neuroscience centres, which already operate within multidisciplinary team arrangements to support complex spinal and neurological cases.The evidence base for the diagnosis and surgical management of CCI remains limited and is an area of ongoing clinical debate. Decisions about service configuration, including whether to develop new national service models, must be informed by robust clinical evidence on effectiveness, safety, and patient outcomes, as well as by advice from NHS England and relevant clinical experts.NHS England continues to keep specialised neurosurgical service arrangements under review, and patients with complex or rare presentations can be considered for assessment and management through existing specialist pathways. The Department will continue to work with NHS England and others to ensure that services for people with rare and complex conditions are safe, evidence‑based, and focused on improving patient outcomes.