Written questions by Maguire.

What steps his Department is taking to (a) increase capacity and (b) reduce inequalities in accessing respiratory diagnoses.

The Government is committed to increasing the capacity of respiratory services and is improving access to these services through new community diagnostic centres (CDCs).All standard and large CDCs are required to offer diagnostic respiratory tests such as spirometry and full lung function tests as part of their core testing offer.The 2025/26 capital guidance confirmed that £1.65 billion of capital funding is being allocated to support National Health Service performance across secondary and emergency care across 2025/26 more broadly. This includes funding to enable the completion of 2024/25 CDC schemes, as well as to expand existing and build new CDCs.

What progress has been made with his EU counterparts on further military cooperation between the UK and Common Security and Defence Policy exercises.

The Security and Defence Partnership agreed with the European Union on 19 May 2025 is an example of this Government delivering on our manifesto commitments to strengthen European security, support growth and reinforce NATO. We will continue to prioritise engagement and cooperation on the issues that are most important in helping to safeguard European security and prosperity – all in support of this government’s NATO First defence policy as set out in the Security and Defence Review. The Security and Defence Partnership outlines that the UK will consider its participation in EU CSDP civilian and military crisis management activity. This cooperation can take many forms and officials are in discussions with the EU to explore potential options.

What steps his Department is taking to help increase awareness of the Armed Forces Covenant Duty amongst service personnel.

Defence has made a concerted effort and is absolutely committed to raising awareness of the Armed Forces Covenant Legal Duty through our election manifesto commitment to fully extend the duty into law. This includes the creation of a Duty toolkit which explains the practical implications for the Armed Forces community and outlines the key policies that it encompasses. The toolkit is held on the Covenant’s dedicated website, available at the following link: https://www.armedforcescovenant.gov.uk/ Questions concerning the Duty are embedded within both the Armed Forces Continuous Attitude Survey and Families Continuous Attitude Survey, helping to assess awareness levels and identify areas where Service personnel and families may face disadvantage. Through the implementation of the Covenant Legal Duty Extension, we will be producing and providing educational and communications’ resources to support understanding further.

How many candidates applying to join the armed forces were turned down on the basis of poor dental health in each of the last 10 years.

The Royal Navy, British Army, and Royal Air Force operate individual recruitment schemes and data on candidates who have been unable to join the Armed Forces for dental reasons is recorded separately for each Service. Data is provided for the period as held in accordance with medical record retention policies. For the Royal Navy, 17 candidates have been placed ‘Medically On-Hold’ since June 2025. Following dental treatment, six of the 17 candidates have since been assessed as medically fit to join the Royal Navy. Historic data on candidates to the Royal Navy who have been placed ‘Medically On-Hold’ for dental reasons is not held in the format requested and could only be provided at disproportionate cost. For the British Army, the following table provides the number of candidates who were rejected at medical review for dental reasons: Total Medical Failures2019202020212022202320242025Dental Only43161374Dental + Other Conditions0243552 For the Royal Air Force, the following table provides the number of candidates who were coded for dental failures: Years (completion date)Dental fail201812019520205202152022220235202421202513Total57

With reference to the Strategic Defence Review 2025, if he will set out (a) a timeline and (b) interim milestones for increasing the number of active reserves by 20 per cent.

This Government is hugely grateful for the contribution made by our Reserve Forces, who provide the UK with the ability to meet the threats we face at home and overseas, in a cost-effective way. The Military Strategic Headquarters, in partnership with the Military Commands, is leading ongoing work to plan the increase in the number of Reserves by 20 per cent, when the financial situation allows. It is too early in the process to set out a defined timeline and associated milestones to achieve this target.

What steps his Department is taking to reduce holdover wait times for trainees.

Holdover wait times for trainees vary across the single Services and it is not a universal picture; however multiple steps are being taken to reduce wait times across all three Services. Force growth and training have been prioritised, with training pipelines experiencing increased productivity with additional military, civil service and contractor workforce provisioned to deliver optimal sequencing. The efficiency of the UK Military Flying Training System (UKMFTS) continues to improve, with a consistently reducing number of trainees in holdovers, and the duration of holdovers also reducing significantly. Holdovers in UKMFTS Aircrew training pipelines are monitored through established tri-Service governance structures, particularly the Aircrew Pipeline Management Group (APMG) and Aircrew Pipeline Steering Group (APSG), both chaired by RAF 22 Group. These forums enable early visibility of emerging constraints and have directly contributed to reductions in both the number and duration of holdovers across UKMFTS.

How much funding his Department plans to provide for primary care services in each of the next three years.

The Department’s settlement was announced at the 2025 Spending Review. The details of Spending Review budget allocations, inclusive of primary care services, within departments is still being determined for 2026/27 and we are working to provide the detail and certainty needed on future funding and spending plans. The budget allocations for 2027/28 and 2028/29 will be determined through the business planning rounds for the corresponding years and will tie back to the 2025 Spending Review settlement.

Whether veterans have their military compensation disregarded when means testing income for benefits.

The honourable member has previously raised this broad issue and I refer her to the answer given on 8 July 63814

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent information her Department holds on the restrictions on (a) medicines and (b) medical equipment put in place by Israel at entry points into Gaza.

Humanitarian partners continue to report delays, restrictions, and denials of critical medical supplies getting into Gaza. On 18 October, the Foreign Secretary raised this directly with Foreign Minister Sa'ar and pressed for the reopening of the Rafah crossing. We continue to urge Israel to allow unhindered humanitarian access including lifting of restrictions on medical supplies.UK support includes funding for UK-Med and World Health Organization Egypt to deliver critical healthcare both in Gaza and the region. UK support has enabled UK-Med to complete nearly 750,000 patient consultations in Gaza.

How many armed forces personnel were categorised as NATO dental fitness Category (a) 2, (b) 3 and (c) 4 on the basis that they needed dental care or treatment in order to be fully deployable in each of the last 10 years.

The following table provides the numbers of UK Armed Forces personnel categorised as NATO Category 2, 3 and 4, as at 1 April each year from 1 April 2015 to April 2025: NATO Category234201510,0968,01528,76720169,8936,94822,47820179,4966,08119,435201810,4096,30623,71220199,9666,42118,066202010,0057,26119,927202113,23713,52343,947202213,31812,34826,962202311,45110,68723,358202417,22112,28321,699202521,46113,74220,870 Personnel categorised as NATO Category 2 and 3 are those who require either preventative or interventive treatment to achieve optimal dental fitness. Personnel categorised as NATO Category 4 are those who require a periodic dental examination, have an undetermined dental status, or have missing or incomplete dental records.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what support her Department is providing to help decontaminate agricultural land in Gaza.

The UK is deeply concerned by the collapse of Gaza's agricultural sector and the impact the destruction has had on food security. Recent assessments by the UN indicate that 86 per cent of cropland in Northern Gaza has been damaged. In response, we have scaled up our support for the World Food Programme (WFP). On 13 October we announced a £20 million humanitarian aid package, including support to the WFP to deliver vital assistance to thousands of civilians across Gaza. We are also supporting the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) pooled fund, which has provided funding to the Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO).The UK stands ready to take a leading role in support of Palestinian-led early recovery and reconstruction efforts from phase 2 of the ceasefire through to sustainable peace.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment her Department has made of the potential of agricultural land in Gaza to grow adequate quantities of food to support the population.

The UK is deeply concerned by the collapse of Gaza's agricultural sector and the impact the destruction has had on food security. Recent assessments by the UN indicate that 86 per cent of cropland in Northern Gaza has been damaged. In response, we have scaled up our support for the World Food Programme (WFP). On 13 October we announced a £20 million humanitarian aid package, including support to the WFP to deliver vital assistance to thousands of civilians across Gaza. We are also supporting the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) pooled fund, which has provided funding to the Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO).The UK stands ready to take a leading role in support of Palestinian-led early recovery and reconstruction efforts from phase 2 of the ceasefire through to sustainable peace.

What steps his Department is taking to recruit dentists into the NHS.

We are determined to rebuild National Health Service dentistry, but it will take time and there are no quick fixes. Strengthening the workforce is key to our ambitions.To rebuild dentistry in the long term, we will reform the dental contract, with a shift to focus on prevention and the retention of NHS dentists. The Government’s ambition is to deliver fundamental contract reform before the end of this Parliament.Integrated care boards are recruiting more dentists through the Golden Hello scheme. This recruitment incentive will see dentists receiving payments of £20,000 to work in those areas that need them most for three years.As announced in our 10-Year Health Plan, the Government will make it a requirement for newly qualified dentists to practice in the NHS for a minimum period, intended to be at least three years. That will mean more NHS dentists and more NHS appointments.We will also publish a 10 Year Workforce Plan and ensure the NHS has the right people in the right places, with the right skills to deliver the best care for patients, when they need it.

If he will take steps to ensure that people can see a GP within (a) seven days and (b) within 24 hours if it is urgent.

We are committed to ensuring that patients can access digital consultations within 24 hours, recognising the significance of timely care for all.Under the current GP Contract, practices are required to ensure that anyone needing an appointment at a general practice is offered one within two weeks, with those requiring urgent attention being seen on the same day.We expect practices to offer patients an appropriate response on the day they contact the practice, according to the urgency of their clinical needs. There are various forms this response could take, and an appointment will not be required in all cases.In August 2025, 44.4% of all appointments were delivered on the same day as they were booked. This is up 0.7% since August 2024. 87.7% of appointments not usually booked in advance were delivered within two weeks of booking.

What information his Department holds on the number of people who were seen by a GP in (a) September and (b) October 2025.

NHS England collects and publishes statistics on the total number of general practice (GP) appointments delivered each month. This data is published one month in arrears in order to allow for sufficient time for all appointment records to be collated, validated, and quality assured. As a result, data for October will be available at the end of November. For context, in September 2025, 32 million appointments were delivered, 14 million of which were delivered by GPs, or 43%. In August 2024, 27 million appointments were delivered, with 12 million provided by GPs, also 44%.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to help reduce the risks of flooding.

This Government is investing at least a record £10.5 billion until 2036 – the largest flood programme in history, which is projected to better protect nearly 900,000 properties. On 14 October, following consultation, the Government announced major changes to its flood and coastal erosion funding policy. The new funding policy will optimise funding between building new flood projects and maintaining existing defences and will ensure that deprived communities continue to receive vital investment. We will use Government funding to unlock investment from public, private and charitable sources, making every £1 of Government investment go further. We will also invest at least £300 million in natural flood management over ten years – the highest figure to date for the floods programme. The Government has also set up its Floods Resilience Taskforce to provide oversight of national and local flood resilience and improve preparedness, especially ahead of the autumn and winter flood season.

What steps his Department is taking to help ensure that people with liver (b) cirrhosis, (b) advanced liver disease and (c) those at high risk of liver cancer receive systematic (i) surveillance and (ii) early diagnosis.

As part of a program to transform liver disease outcomes we will work with partners, including the British Liver Trust, to raise awareness and address the stigma related to hazardous and harmful levels of alcohol use, obesity, and viral hepatitis, which are key drivers of liver disease.We will improve early detection of liver disease by developing best practice diagnostic pathways for primary care with agreed common referral thresholds. This includes exploring innovative approaches to increasing early detection, such as Intelligent Liver Function Testing, and improving access to treatments for liver disease, thereby tackling health inequalities in relation to access, uptake, patient experience, and outcomes.We will continue to reach out to the communities that are worst affected by liver disease through the Community Liver Health Checks programme to proactively identify people with undiagnosed liver disease, who are suitable for liver cancer surveillance. The number of mobile liver scanning teams has almost doubled in the last two years. Over 100,000 people have had a fibroscan of their liver, and over 8,000 have been referred on for vital liver cancer checks since the programme began.My Rt Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care has announced that a National Cancer Plan for England will be published in the new year. It will seek to improve every aspect of cancer care to better the experiences and outcomes for people with cancer, including for liver cancer. Our goal is to reduce the number of lives lost to cancer over the next 10 years.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to prevent illegal sewage dumping in chalk stream rivers.

Fixing the systemic issues in the water system is essential to addressing the multiple pressures facing chalk streams. Restoring these waterbodies to better ecological health is a core ambition of this Government’s overall programme of work to clean up rivers, lakes, and seas for good. Subject to consultation, we will abolish Ofwat and create a new, powerful, and integrated regulator, including a regional element to ensure greater local involvement in water planning and allow all sources of pollution to be addressed across the river catchment. Our Storm Overflows Discharge Reduction Plan already categorises chalk streams as high priority sites, ensuring that they are prioritised for improvement as part of the record £11 billion investment to improve nearly 3,000 storm overflows in England and Wales. Additionally, our protections through the Water (Special Measures) Act will hold polluters accountable and ensure these iconic British habitats are preserved for future generations.

Whether his Department plans to launch public awareness campaigns to promote earlier recognition of (a) liver disease and (b) liver cancer symptoms.

Awareness of liver disease can be raised by providing information to the public and by supporting health and care professionals to discuss liver disease with their patients. The NHS.UK website provides the public with essential information on the types of liver disease, their possible causes, symptoms, treatment, and prevention. Further information is available at the following link:https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/liver-disease/NHS England runs Help Us Help You campaigns in England to increase knowledge of cancer symptoms and address barriers to acting on them, to encourage people to come forward as soon as possible to see their general practitioner. The campaigns focus on a range of symptoms, as well as encouraging body awareness, to help people spot symptoms across a wide range of cancers at an earlier point, including abdominal cancers.NHS England and other National Health Service organisations, nationally and locally, publish information on the signs and symptoms of many different types of cancer, including liver cancer. This information can be found at sources like the NHS.UK website, which is available at the following link:https://www.nhs.uk/

Whether the forthcoming national cancer plan will include specific (a) targets and (b) actions for (i) brain, (ii) liver, (iii) lung, (iv) oesophageal, (v) pancreatic and (vi) stomach cancer.

Reducing the number of lives lost to cancer is a key aim of the National Cancer Plan. Having consulted with key stakeholders and patient groups, I confirm that the plan will be published early in the new year. The plan will include further details on how we will improve outcomes for patients with cancer, including less survivable cancers, as well as speeding up diagnosis and treatment, ensuring patients have access to the latest treatments and technology, and ultimately driving up this country’s cancer survival rates.The Department has been working with members of the Less Survivable Cancers Taskforce as part of the development of the plan to identify how to improve diagnosis, treatment, and outcomes for less survivable cancers, which includes lung, pancreatic, liver, brain, oesophageal, and stomach cancer.